Playlist for Spring

While I generally practice at home in silence, I know music can add depth to yoga asana.  I've long enjoyed this playlist for spring classes, and brought it back this week with the addition of Marissa Nadler. Enjoy! Track 01 - Sacred Sounds Vol. I

Shree Ram/Om - The Best of Wah! - Wah!

Om Namah Shivaya - The Best of Wah! - Wah!

Trad: Simple Gifts - Classic Yo-Yo - Yo-Yo Ma, Alison Krauss

Les Abbeilles - eXtraOrdinary rendition - Rupa & The April Fishes

Western Days - Volume One - Gabriel Mintz

Le Soledad - Sympathique - Pink Martini

C'etait salement romantique - Coeur de pirate

Drive - July - Marissa Nadler

Was it a Dream - July - Marissa Nadler

Yaad - eXtraOrdinary rendition - Rupa & The April Fishes

Bach: Cello Suite #1 in G, BWV 1007 Prelude - Classic Yo-Yo Ma

Gol na mBan san Ar - Dialogues:agallaimh - Maire Ni Chathasaigh & Chris Newman

Mountain - Adagio: Music for Meditation - Peter Davison

silence is golden

Before I left for three weeks in Idaho, one of my teachers offered up a bit of wisdom.  "With family," she said, "never miss an opportunity to say nothing." Attempting, or at least thinking about attempting, to keep my mouth shut is a good way to practice listening.  I'm trying to use my ears as much as my mouth and my eyes while up in the mountains.  There's a frog living out back, I'm surprised how alert he is mid-afternoon when I just want to nap in the shade.  The chime of the sailing mast lulls me to sleep at night.  Water lapping against the sand offers refreshment before my toes hit the waves.  The lack of hum from motor boats this morning tells me August is winding down.  Stories told over dinner invite glimpses into siblings lives.

Better still is when I quiet enough to listen to what's beyond words and familiar sounds...

He stood there under a bright moon, with his finger to his lip.  "Shhhhh, listen," he said.  "If you listen, the silence has a lot to say."  (M Paterniti, NY Times).

playlist - a fondness for french

Hatha Flow Level One  | February 5th Playlist Il vecchio e il bambino  |  Carla Bruni

Autrefois  |  Pink Martini

Le Ceil Dans Une Chambre  |  Carla Bruni

Emmanuelle  |  Emmanuelle Seigner

C'était salement romantique  |  Coeur de pirate

Dansez-Vous  |  Pink Martini

Comme des enfants  |  Coeur de pirate

P'tite pédale  |  Emmanuelle Seigner

Intermission  |  Coeur de pirate

Déranger le pierres  |  Carla Bruni

Corbeau  |  Coeur de pirate

Possibilité d'une île  |  Carla Bruni

Syrinx  |  Claude Debussy

and a little ode to the growing daylight...

Rachmaninov: Vespers, Op. 37-04.  O Serene Light

And it was like...magic

i'd forgotten about that line repeated several times throughout Sleepless in Seattle.  in fact, i'd pretty much wiped the movie itself from my memory.  until it came up in conversation recently as a holiday film and i got to watch it with someone who'd never seen it before.  amazingly, aside from some gigantic/corded telephones and unfortunate 90's fashion, the movie stands the test of time quite well.  witty exchanges between father and son really steal the show.  and then there's that line.  "And it was like...magic."  and so it was yesterday in my afternoon yoga class. our focus was on transitions - approaching and living them mindfully.  we slowed everything down and to my utter delight, my students responded with one of the most beautiful practices i have witnessed as a teacher.  we lost ourselves in movement, music and presence.  we aligned ourselves with the coming new moon and got carried away in the intensity of its luscious grounding energy.

in the aftermath, it seems appropriate to honor my students with a few words of gratitude and share a playlist with you that's calmed and inspired my week.  to those who shared their lovely selves with me yesterday, i say thank you.  to every one else, i offer this simple meditation: being present ≠ being perfect.

January 10, 2013  |  Playlist

Butterfly's Day Out  |  Yo-Yo Ma, Mark O'Conner, Edgar Meyer                                      Violin Concerto in F Minor  |   Vivaldi's Four Seasons (Winter)                                            Gavotte et six double  | David Greilsammer                                                                          Le Soledad  |  Pink Martini Villa-Lobos: Suite Populaire Bresilienne - 1. Mazurka  |  Manuel Barrueco                           Les Abeilles  |  Rupa & The April Fishes                                                             Intermission  |  Coeur de pirate Gol na mBan san Ar  |  Máire Ni Chathasaigh & Chris Newman                                       Bach Cello Suite #1 in G, BWV 1007 - Prelude  |  Yo-Yo Ma                                          Rachmaninov: Vespers, Op. 37-.04 O Serene Light  |  Robert Shaw Festival Singers

same old tunes, like new again

I still remember the first time I ever went to a yoga class where the music played was entirely classical (thank you Brent Morton!)  It was revolutionary to me - I felt completely at peace as the music became part of my practice.  I do enjoy some french ballads every now and then, along with Pink Martini and a random CD of mystery chants.  For special occasions I'll pull out Buxtehude - an amazing baroque composer. As I work on some playlists for this week's classes, I find myself returning to a mixture of old favorites.  I'm always amazed that after a month of festive music, everything else seems new again in January.  Like my home after I take down the tree and put the furniture back in its normal place -- vaguely familiar, yet fresh.  A bit of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons (Winter), some Yo-Yo Ma, Pink Martini's La Soledad and a lovely little instrumental piece from Coeur de pirate.  Just a few songs I'm piecing together for tomorrow...